Mauser Deutsche Waffen und Munitions Fabriken P08 Luger SA Pistol

Manufactured in 1939, this pistol is one of more than 120,000
Lugers that were made in that year for German Air Force, Infantry,
and Naval troops. When DWM merged into a consortium in 1930, all
production equipment and parts were transferred to the Mauser
factory in Oberndorf, Germany. Leftover parts, such as the
DMW-marked front toggle link on this gun, continued to be used. SN
3109

The Luger or Parabellum pistol is perhaps one of the most
recognizable semi-automatics in history. A veteran of two world
wars, these workhorses served on land, sea, and air, and were a
prized war trophy for returning Doughboys and G.I.s. In addition to
German Imperial and Nazi military models, Lugers were also
manufactured for police and civilian sales, and many were also
produced under contract for other nations in Europe, the Americas,
and the Middle East. Post-war versions were also manufactured by
German firms Mauser and Erma, and by Mitchell Arms and Stoeger.

The Luger was originally developed by Georg Luger, an engineer
employed by Berlin armsmaker Ludwig Loewe & Co. Luger also
acted as a representative for the firm, which produced both rifles
and handguns, including Hugo Borchardt's toggle-action semi-auto
pistol. As with the Parabellum, the Borchardt was very distinctive
in appearance, with its rear overhanging recoil spring and straight
buttstock. This 1894 design, advanced for its time, was the first
commercially successful auto-loading pistol, as well as the first
to employ a detachable buttstock magazine. Its toggle action was
also a first, and arguably the best feature of the Borchardt.
Unfortunately, the pistol's grip was unnatural, the recoil spring
complicated and temperamental, and stripping and reassembly was an
extremely complicated process.

Although Borchardt himself saw no reason to alter his design,
Georg Luger quickly grasped the need to improve on some of the
gun's less desirable features while retaining its better
attributes. Originally termed the Parabellum-Pistole, System
Borchardt-Luger, the first patent for this gun was issued in
Britain in 1900. Georg Luger's design included Borchardt's rising
toggle action and detachable magazine, but employed an improved
spring, extractor, and safety mechanisms, 4-inch barrel, and
forward-raked butt. This original design was later improved upon as
well. Beginning in 1902, a carbine version with a 6-inch barrel,
wood fore end and detachable wood stock was introduced.

Still, Luger's attempts to gain acceptance with Germany's
military met with resistance, due in large part to its small 7.65mm
cartridge. Beginning in 1904, Lugers were also produced in 9mm
Parabellum caliber, and acceptance by the German Navy followed.
These pistols also employed a coiled mainspring instead of the leaf
spring featured on earlier models, a round-topped bolt, and a
change in toggle design that allowed it to be lifted rather than
pulled rearward. The commercial M06 Luger included a
rearward-operating safety lever, and a breech stop that held the
action open after the last round in the magazine had been
fired.

The P08 is undoubtedly the most famous of all Luger pistols.
They became the standard German military sidearm in 1908, a
distinction they held until the adoption of the Walther P38 prior
to the Second World War. P08 production continued until 1943, and
they remained popular with many German troops. Thousands of P08
Lugers were manufactured by Deutsche Waffen und Munitionsfabrik,
the successor to Ludwig, Loewe, and at Koniglich Preussische
Gewehrfabrik at Erfurt in Thuringen. The P08 lacks the grip safety
common to earlier versions, but are in other ways virtually
identical to their predecessors. A Naval version with a 5-inch
barrel and dual-range rear sights was also introduced, and this was
followed in 1917 with an Artillery Model featuring a 7-inch barrel
and a rear sight graduated for use up to 800 meters. Some Artillery
Models were issued with 32-round drum magazines and wood shoulder
stocks for use by NCOs and shock troops.

In addition to German military and commercial production, P08s
were produced for Bulgaria, Russia, Turkey, Persia, Venezuela,
Abyssinia, Roumania, and Switzerland prior to the outbreak of war
in 1914. Under the Treaty of Versailles, Germany's military was
severely restricted in size, and armament production was limited as
well to 1000 guns per year. Many German arms were confiscated and
destroyed or re-issued by the Allies to friendly nations. While the
P08 remained the sidearm of the Reichswehr and Germany's police
forces, many surviving Lugers were remanufactured to 7.65mm models,
and most new production examples were intended for export. The
Vickers Co. of Birmingham, England also produced P08 pistols during
this period, as did the Swiss firm Waffenfabrik Bern.

While known in Europe as the Parabellum, the term "Luger" became
commonplace in the 1920s, when many P08s were produced for sale in
the United States. The Luger name was recognizable among American
veterans of the Great War, and New York City importer A. F. Stoeger
patented the name as an aid to sales in the U.S. Luger pistols also
had a pre-war connection to the United States.

A very few M06 pistols were produced in .45 ACP caliber for
testing and evaluation by the U.S. Army in 1907. This design was
not adopted, and only three of these rare guns are known to exist
today. Other Lugers were produced for U.S. commercial sales prior
to the First World War. These guns, termed "American Eagle", bore
the U.S. eagle crest on their receiver tops. Although manufacture
of arms was limited in Weimar Germany, some clandestine production
took place in violation of the Armistice. After Adolf Hitler's rise
to power in 1933, German rearmament began in earnest. The Mauser
Werke factory in Oberndorf took over the manufacture of the P08 in
1934, with additional examples produced for the Luftwaffe by
Heinrich Krieghoff Waffenfabrik of Suhl.

During the interwar years, machinery from the armory at Erfurt
had been acquired by Jewish-owned Simson & Co. for use in
foreign P08 production. This equipment was confiscated by the Nazis
and sold to Krieghoff. Initial production arms were stamped with
manufacturer's names and , but, citing security concerns, arms
produced after 1938 bore only a code to identify maker and year of
manufacture. After the initial needs of Germany's remilitarization
had been met, production reverted exclusively to Mauser until P08
production was discontinued in 1943. Limited production was
undertaken by both Mauser and Kreighoff immediately after the war,
when a few hundred guns were manufactured under Allied supervision.
These guns were intended as presentation models. Production resumed
in the 1970s, with the introduction of the Mauser/Interarms
P08.

These examples differ slightly from the original
German-manufactured pistols, and are actually patterned after the
Waffenfabrik Bern Lugers. More recently, both Stoeger and Mitchell
Arms have produced stainless steel versions. Although not as widely
produced in either original runs or as reissues as other military
pistols such as the M1911, the Luger has achieved legendary status,
and these guns have gained a dedicated following among both
shooters and collectors.